


Safe Risk

by Aouraxxu



Category: Dreaming of Sunshine, Dreaming of Sunshine - Silver Queen, Naruto
Genre: Affection, Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Ambiguous Age, Angst, Child Soldiers, F/M, Family, First Crush, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Itachi loves praise, Kako feels older, Kako would so take care of the root kids, One-Sided Attraction, Praise, Uchiha Itachi-centric, child soldiers don’t get to be kids, could be read as family comfort, could be read as romance, minor gore, or a crush, shikako root, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:01:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25424350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aouraxxu/pseuds/Aouraxxu
Summary: Set in the Arranged Marriage AU someone else established.The Uchiha massacre  is averted when Kako and Sasuke are engaged, pulling the Uchiha back into the fold of the village. Somehow, Shikako gets pushed into ROOT.While running an off-the-books mission together, Itachi’s exhaustion catches up with him. Injured and vulnerable in more ways than one.Child soldiers don’t know how to process affection and Kako feels old.
Relationships: Uchiha Itachi/Original Female Character(s), maybe
Comments: 3
Kudos: 129





	Safe Risk

The rain was hammering relentlessly down upon them; Thumping against the hard ceramic of their masks. Their pace was quick and steady, outrunning any enemy nin that might have happened upon the wreck they'd left behind. The mission was almost a seamless success. It would have been perfectly executed if it wasn't for one small oversight. The consequences were two fold: Itachi was clipped awkwardly in the side and, now, his partner was no doubt aware of his extreme exhaustion. He was sure he was handling it, the relentless plunge after plunge into missions. ANBU and ROOT overlapping, tugging him from combat to combat. War had taught him to distance himself from the stretch of his bones. Work to be done left no time to feel the ache of being overworked. It was a distraction that Konoha couldn't afford. Yet, all it took was a vicious stab to pop the bubble and now he could feel the raw depth of what it is to be tired. Itachi's foot slid on the landing of a jump. The shift in weight stretched the gouge across his left ribs, splitting it open further and thinning out the fragile skin. Shit. Now the consequences were three, as he felt shikako slip her arm under his armpit, using her other hand to guide as much of him as she could over her shoulders. The side with the injury pressed against her, he hissed. She shushed his protests. She wrapped each of them together, carrying his weight. Itachi's head lulled. He was breathing heavy. Neither of them were medics. They weren't expected to be injured. He would have to explain himself.

Shikako moved them quicker. She must have held his pace as not to pressure him forward, letting him move as quickly as was sensible before. She had more energy left than he had given her credit for. He hoped she had not run ROOT missions like he had been. Hoped that team 7 was what was keeping her busy, building her stamina. His feet practically dangle, though she was careful to hold him up high enough so they didn't drag across the mountain floor with each jump forward. She was tall for her age though he was taller. Despite everything, Itachi caught himself thinking about how kind that was. How she smelt nice. It was like being on a mission with Shisui. He felt relaxed despite the danger they were in. Always in. Not that he trusted they could handle it but more that his teammate wasn't adding to the list of threats for once. In ROOT, no one was safe. Not even with each other. But the clan was, so far. Not like there was more than him and those two. And shikako was clan. She was going to be an Uchiha after all. Eventually. Name and everything. He bobbed his head casually to the other side, away from her, using the jostle of the next jump to cover the movement. Itachi wondered how he was going to deal with his injury. He must be losing blood to think such weird things. Her uniform blacks were soaked heavy in the rain, there was no way he could smell her right now anyway. His tongue felt big in his mouth, he swallowed. He felt weird. The squeeze of pain he got from pinching his side back together helped steady his breathing.

Cave, Shikako tapped in code onto his chest armour. Rest.

Itachi went to refuse. He wanted to get home quickly. The mission was complete and she had to rest for her official mission tomorrow. Itachi would have to report and, no doubt, slip back into ROOT or ANBU rotation. He'd have to prove his worth to the village after this lazy slip. He'd lost the right to rest. Shikako was having none of it, pressing him harder into her side. It hurt. The side of her uniform was wet from more than rain, he realised. That injury needed assessing. He winced, running through the haze of his mind how he would phrase his fuckup in his report.

Once they were situated in the cave, Shikako set about making a fire. She peeled off the first layer of her uniform and flattened it against a rock to dry. Both of their masks were laid on the ground after being wiped clean. Itachi was propped against the wall, his injury was nearest the fire for both the light and warmth. He had lifted his shirt and was prodding the puckering of the wound. She kneeled beside him with a kunai.

"I'm going to cauterise and clean it, ok?" She flexed her grip. "It's big but not deep, not really. It'll hurt all the same though." Her eyes slid up from the gash, pinning him in place. She waited for understanding and permission.

He swallowed. Itachi didn't get injured often and when he did he rarely sought aide from others. He was a prodigy and could handle things on his own. As a child in war, his own father had praised him for suffering without excess. To bother others with less-than-fatal issues was to be a nuisance. Waste of his talents and medics time. It wasn't that this injury was fatal or that he was incapable of tending to himself but Itachi swallowed and nodded. He could let someone else takeover this. If it's Kako…

She moved slowly, making sure her movements were anticipated. Not because he was dangerous but like she wanted him to be comfortable. Maybe even comforted, he thought as she turned the weapon around in the fire and smoothed one hand over his knee. With a nod, she warned him of the next step. The kunai was red. Itachi had a high pain tolerance, he had learnt to. Still, he closed his eyes and leant his head back. She had one hand sprawled out on his chest, holding him still while she shifted her weight to get a better angle.

The smell was rank. It overpowered the soft heavy scent of rain that had followed them into the cave. Itachi pointedly did not scream though he did tense. The inside of his cheek burst between his teeth. Moments like this lasted forever. The heat of hot metal, the twist of melting skin, the eruption of nerves being burned back into place. He tasted metal in his mouth. He felt his nails split as he scratched the ground. He did not make a sound.

Then, the red hot heat was gone. What was left was the throbbing fire in his side, the sting in his mouth. He breathed through his nose, letting out a breath which had been caught. He blinked his eyes open, feeling dizzy and nauseous. As other senses returned to him, he could feel her fingers rubbing his chest in small patterns. She was mumbling to him. He strained to make out the words.

"Did so good, 'Tachi. Did great. We're ok, you're ok, baby. You did so good for me." She was busy using her other hand to rub soft gentle circles of disinfectant over his wound. He couldn't feel it much, its numbing properties having a fast effect. She was still cooing at him distractedly while she began to wrap his side with clean bandages.

A new warmth crept up Itachi's neck.

He tried to not listen. The rain bettering outside, the dripping from the mouth of the cave, the crackle of the fire. He could still make out each affectionate whisper. He could feel the gentleness in her voice. Despite his resistance, it was like his mind fished through the stream of sounds the make out each praise she gave freely. Her voice was soft and sincere. He felt like a child. Except he didn't.

She looked up at him and smiled. Her lashes were long, rain still running off some. She smiled. Itachi's breathing was shallow though he didn't look away. His little brother's fiancé reached up and patted his cheek. Her fingers reached further, softly scratching the back of his head. She had tugged down the side of his shirt as she pulled herself up to loosely hug him. She was careful to keep all her weight on her heels, hovering over him.

She really did smell good. She smelt like the incense his clan used. Itachi felt his face get warmer though he was no nearer the fire than he was before. He felt too unsure to hug back. A little too lost to feel confident in his decision making. Too many ideas flip flopped in his mind, none of which at all appropriate for him to do. Instead, he buried his head in the crook of her neck and curled his fingers together in his lap. He shouldn't indulge.

She was talking again. "Did so good, angel. We'll go home soon. You've done so good." His stomachs twisted. He didn't know how to respond. No one talked to him like this. He curled his toes in his sandals. All he could think to do was nod his head into her neck. Tears pricked his eyes though it was unclear as to why. His face felt too hot, he was afraid to pull it out of the cloak of her hair. He tightened the grip he had on the front of her under shirt. When had he moved his hands? The thumping in his chest could not be surely attested to the chase they'd escaped.

Quiet. Leaning her head against his, she stopped mumbling into his ear. He hated how badly he wanted to hear more. How deeply the words had stirred a side unfamiliar to even himself. He felt small in her arms. Warm and safe. It was such an unfamiliar feeling.

He wasn't sure he was allowed to stay but he didn't move for a long time.

**Author's Note:**

> This could be read as Itachi’s inability to recognise a crush or so much blatant affection from family is equally new and overwhelming to him. Or both, crossing the wires.   
> Poor kid deserves a break and a hug either way. 
> 
> Shikako Nara comes from Dreaming of Sunshine by Silver Queen.


End file.
